Gettin' it done.. Little at a time...

Well, the house 'deal' is finally completely starting to come together~  And BOY am I GLAD!

They came and did the appraisal on the 'old' house today- the one we are still living in- and I think that he was pretty impressed~! He told me he'd seen a lot of "re-do's" during doing appraisals, but not one in this short of time, especially, and that looked so amazing when it was done! That made me smile.

Anyhow, since the appraisal, we are just one step closer to closing this deal!

As for the "new" house, it's coming together and a little at a time, it's getting done! We have a proposed MOVING date; yes, you heard me right: we're almost ready to MOVE finally!!!  The goal is next weekend/early week.

The carpet has been installed in all of the hallways and bedrooms, and now we're just waiting for the flooring to be completed on Monday by the installers in the living room and the study.  The granite came today (Yahoo!) and the tile is just about completely complete!

We're getting there.. and Cambree is OH so excited. Although she's lived in about 3 different houses, this is the first time she remembers moving. :) Exciting times in the Ransom household.

Hopefully, the next blog I type I'll be getting ready to sit in my new study, or maybe my living room on my lap top! It's gettin done... little at a time!

It's His. Praise God!

"He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he."  -Deuteronomy 32:4

Well, I suppose it's time to update this thing; once again I'm behind.

So many things have been going on in the life of the Ransom's here lately~ First of all, Praise God, we have a contract pending on our house! Labor Day weekend a family came and saw the house and fell completely in love with it and we quickly agreed on a price and they are going to get to make our home, their home. I'm so very thankful to our gracious God that he has sent a buyer to us. And the timing is great.. So excited to be able to get into our new house!

The new house is getting closer... The tile is almost all laid, all except our bathroom is now down! He (Jason- our tile guy) has been laying it over the past week and has a lot of it grouted, even. Our carpet comes a week from today. Which is absolutely unreal to me. So much more to be done, and so much cleaning to do.

I've been stressed to the MAX. My face has even been broken out due to the stress!?  I'm a worry wort. Always have been. Doesn't matter, sometimes, with the smallest little things, even the things that I can't change- I worry. It's my nature.  And this situation has been no different. Things have come up that have cost more than we anticipated, plus trying to support two houses worth of bills.. not to mention that time sometimes seems to be dragging on forever with projects, although I'm shocked every time I look at the date of how quickly it's really passing by.  In the midst of it all, I've been so stressed that I've neglected myself (eating more aggressively, I know, because of emotional stress), neglected my husband and also shown him a short temper, and been short tempered with my two girls.

Tonight, I decided, with God's help, I'm not going to let this get to me anymore. Tomorrow is going to be a brand new day, and tonight I'm going to bed a different person.

God has NEVER failed me.

He brought me a man who I admire and who is my best friend - a man who I never dreamed I'd end up with, but a man who loves me unconditionally with his entire being. He would do anything for me, and I'm SO very grateful for him. I always wanted to have a man who would treat me like his everything- and Jonathan does just that.

God gave me two beautiful girls and made me a mother. He knew the yearnings of my heart were to be a mother and have a daughter who would be my sweetheart, and my friend. And He gave me TWO. I'm SO grateful for them.

God has always provided me a roof over my head and plenty of food to eat.. (which is VERY evident by looking at me :-/ )  I've never been without. We've been fortunate enough to never have to rent.  He's always placed the perfect houses right in our paths. And we've always come out ahead. Never have given up a penny when we moved. 

And now God has provided us a beautiful new home, and a buyer for the home we are ready to move on from.

So why would God fail me now? Why am I being so doubtful? It's HIS. All of it. My money. My home. My worries. Me. It's ALL His. And so tonight, as I go to bed, I'm laying it all at his feet and trusting in Him - again.

Sometimes I think that God likes to lead me into these paths, so I remember that I NEED Him. I NEED to rely on his mercy, grace, and faithfulness to pull me through. He knows me. It always works. :)

Proverbs 3:5-6
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take."

~In Memory of Maddie~

Today, September 1st, is a very special woman's birthday. Her name is Kellie, and she's "Another Day Stronger" today, although I can't imagine the battle she faces, daily. You see, she's a Mommy of a baby she can no longer hold in her arms.. a baby that the Lord took back home. 

October 14, 2010 a precious baby girl, Madison Paige, was brought into this world, and February 17, 2011, she was taken back to be with her Maker.. way too soon... SIDS was ruled as the cause.  

I found out about Kellie when Camryn was just one month younger than the age Maddie was when she passed. It was so devistating to read the story... but I continued to read as I could watch her heal.. Also, she is very much an advocate of SIDS Awareness- which, honestly, I didn't want to have to ever THINK about.. much less research. So a lot of valuable information has been shared through her blog..  

I can't imagine the feelings, the hurts, the wants.. that parents face after losing a child. But I know one thing that can help them through their hurt is to keep their child's memory alive. In this, I think they are able to find some sort of happiness when happiness seems lacking. 

Today, September 1st, Kellie's birthday,  Kellie's only wish (besides wishing she could hold her daughter in her arms again) is to keep Maddie-bug's memory alive. She wished for her followers to blog about Madison~ And so this post is in memory of beautiful Madison, and in honor of all of those parents who face this same reality each day as they wake..

I can relate, in some ways, because I have lost a child through miscarriage, but that could NEVER compare to the loss after you've held them in your arms.. heard their cry.. watched them smile...

Remember Kelly & James in your prayers tonight, as they continue to struggle with the passing of their beautiful daugther.
And to all of you parents out there with a hole in your hurt that cannot be filled.. may your babies' memories never fade... and may God comfort you always.

Link to Kellie's Blog:

http://kandjstaats.blogspot.com/2011/09/maddie.html

Pretty, Pretty Princess

"Yes, I am a princess; my Father is the King of all kings"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last night, we were grocery shopping and we did one of the things that, many times, at the end of our shopping trip we do: browse the clearance aisle.  As we were doing so, we ran across something that as a child, I absolutely loved: Pretty, Pretty Princess- the game.

I didn't introduce Cambree to it immediately (because it was time for a snack, bathtime and bedtime), but today, after she came home from school & had lunch, it was time to introduce her to one of my childhood favorites. 

She sat and watched patiently as I put the game board together, and assembled the jewelry box. And then it was GAME TIME.

I even wore the pieces, just as you're supposed to do. And I won. Twice. Maybe tomorrow she'll win! ;)

Made me feel like a child again, and made me smile as I watched my child's eyes light up and the smile on her face bring joy to the day.

Sometimes, it's the little, $5 things that can make the day brighter....